A plucky pet dog chased away a huge wild elephant that emerged from the forest.

The David and Goliath duel unfolded when the bull, known by locals as Plai Sarika, sauntered from woodland onto a road in a village in Nakhon Ratchasima, northeast Thailand, on Sunday.

Footage shows how the territorial dog was not willing to have the mammoth intruder near its home. He began barking fiercely at the jumbo to ward him off.

With his tail between his legs and no food in his trunk, Plai Sarika solemnly trudged on down the road.

Onlooker Jinwimon said: 'Wild elephants can often cause problems when they come near homes. They can take food or cause damage.

'This little dog showed the elephant who was boss. It was protecting its home.'

Thailand has an estimated 2,000 Asian elephants living in the wild - down from 100,000 a century ago - and around 3,000 in captivity owned privately. In the wild they are seen wandering freely among protected forests, occasionally appearing on the roads that run through them.

Male Asian elephants, unlike African elephants, roam alone once they are over ten years old while females remain with the herd. They are most during mating season from November to January when they emerge from the jungles in search of a mate.

There is conflict when they come into contact with humans on rural roads and in villages so wildlife rangers are tasked with monitoring their movements.